The present invention relates to packets or cases for organizing and holding small medical supplies. These cases are used and worn by medical personnel such as nurses, nurse's assistants, student nurses, medical students, interns, and residents.
Many small packets or kits are known for organizing and holding small medical supplies. Examples of such kits are those marketed under the names of "Reeves Pocket-Packet", "Uniform Accessories Nylon Packet Organizer", "The Pac-Kit", and "Flexiflo". Generally, these kits are formed simply by a panel of material with one or more pockets, key clips, fastened coin pockets, and/or belt loops. Another similar example is that shown in U. S. Pat. No. 668,466, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.
The currently available packets or cases are inadequate though for the needs of today's medical personnel. They do not accommodate enough medical supplies nor do they position them so that they are readily accessible by the personnel. They have limited carrying capacity so that the medical personnel must return frequently to their supply stations to pick up additional supplies. This interrupts the medical procedure and makes it less efficient and more costly. It also encourages the medical personnel to take unnecessary and possibly dangerous short cuts in their work when they do not have the necessary supplies with them. Medical supply cases known in the art further do not provide for an efficient means for securing the supplies within the case so that they do not become dirtied or fall out of the case. This is especially important when the personnel are on their breaks, and take the case with them, such as to the cafeterias. Further with the system of diagnostic related illnesses and the pressures on the hospitals to keep costs down, the workload has increased for the medical personnel, especially the nurses, who often are required to also do the work previously done by the nurse's aides. It is imperative that the medical personnel be as efficient as possible and do not lose time going back and forth to get the needed supplies.